Coonawarra came alive after hours during the annual After Dark vintage celebrations which took place on Friday and Saturday night.

Hundreds of people came from near and far to attend the events which kicked off on a beautiful, balmy Friday evening at DiGiorgio Family Wines.

DiGiorgio Family Wines principal Frank DiGiorgio said the After Dark celebration was a great event and the weather was perfect for the occasion.

“We look forward to it every year, our event is the curtain-raiser for Coonawarra After Dark and it’s always exceptionally well attended,” Mr DiGiorgio said.

Many people gathered for the excitement of the annual vintage stomp, where 10 teams put their stomping skills to the test to win $1000 for a charity of their choice.

There were a couple of empty slots for teams this year, so some attendees jumped in last-minute and formed teams, which included a team of youngsters.

“It was lovely to see that kids team join at the last moment, that made for a bit of fun,” Mr DiGiorgio said.

Your Podiatrist claimed the overall honour and took home the barrel head, a dozen wines and a $1000 donation which supported The South East Animal Welfare League.

In second place was PPHS, which received half a dozen wines and the kids team came in third place, receiving chocolates and other goodies along with wines which were donated to their parents.

Mr DiGiorgio said attendance numbers were less than previous years likely due to COVID, however the event was still well attended.

“Those that came really enjoyed themselves,” he said.

“We were down a few numbers, but in the circumstances we were still really pleased.”

After DiGiorgio, people ventured next door to ‘Wined it Up’ at Brands Laira, where the cellar door was lit up to carry people through to the end of the Friday night celebrations.

Attendees enjoyed wines by the glass, boutique beers and live entertainment by singer Rhys Crimmin was a big hit.

The celebrations continued through to Saturday night at Raidis Estate for a Greek charcoal grill, where Chris Raidis fired up the grill to cook up a Greek feast.

People soaked up the atmosphere at the sold-out event with great weather, wine, beer, cider and live music by local band Any Other Sunday.

Raidis Estate co-owner Emma Raidis said many attendees had travelled to attend the event and it was good to see everyone getting out and supporting the area.

“It’s a good way to connect with customers that we do not get to see very often, a lot of them make the trip just for this event,” Ms Raidis said.

“Everyone said they had a great night, which was great.”